Rolling Hills Kindergarten Program

Kindergarten ProgramRolling Hills is pleased to offer full day Kindergarten with students attending the same days of the week, times, and school calendar days as the rest of the school.

Why full-day kindergarten? We at Rolling Hills believe an extended day kindergarten program will slingshot your child to greater academic success. Research has shown that “full-day kindergarten provides an essential bridge between prekindergarten and the primary grades. It enables children to develop the academic, social and emotional skills they need to be successful. By laying a strong foundation, full-day kindergarten can boost student performance, access and attainment later in school.” (National Education Association http://www.nea.org/assets/docs/HE/mf_kadvoguide.pdf) We strongly believe our full day kindergarten program supports the mission of Rolling Hills, “to have high expectations for our students’ academic success.”

The Benefits of Full-Day Kindergarten: Teachers’ PerspectivesIn a study evaluating teachers’ views on full-day kindergarten, teachers reported a number of benefits for themselves as well as for children and parents, including:

Participating in full-day (kindergarten) eased the transition to first grade, helping children adapt to the demands of a six-hour school day.

A longer school day offered more flexibility and more time to do activities during free-choice times.

Having more time made kindergarten less stressful and frustrating for children because they had time to develop interests and activities more fully.

Participating in the full-day schedule allowed more appropriate challenges for children at all developmental levels.

Children with developmental delays or those “at-risk” of experiencing school problems had more time for completing projects and for needed socializing with peers and teachers.

More advanced students had time to complete long-term projects.

Having full-day kindergarten assisted parents with child care.

Having more time made child assessment and classroom record keeping more manageable for teachers.

Switching to full-day kindergarten gave teachers more time for curriculum planning, incorporating a greater number of thematic units in the school year, and offering more in-depth coverage of each unit.

Kindergarten lunch will be at 11:00-11:35 a.m. with recess time for free play.

Rolling Hills’ healthy before-school breakfast and school day lunch food services is available to kindergarten students. If utilized, regular RHPCS food services costs apply. Our school is proud to partner with the Idaho Child Nutrition Program and the National School Lunch Program to provide healthy meals for our students, including eligibility for financial-need based free and reduced food services.

FUNDINGCurrently, the State of Idaho provides funding for only a half day of kindergarten. Like other public full-day kindergarten programs, the additional costs associated with providing an extended kindergarten is met by program participants. Our Rolling Hills extended day program has a tuition of $275.00 per month September through May. Those families accepting enrollment offered during our lottery process commit to the full-day program. Financial assistance is available, contact the school office to request an application.

Program EnrollmentAs with all grades at Rolling Hills, placement in our kindergarten will still be allocated based on our enrollment lottery process. See our Enrollment page for current details regarding the lottery process, application form, and deadlines. Accepting a Kindergarten seat requires your commitment to the full year, full day Kindergarten program. To reserve your child’s placement, a non-refundable commitment deposit of $150.00 is required, details and timing requirements are included with the placement offer. Assuming your child attends the Rolling Hills kindergarten program throughout the school year, the deposit will be applied to the students May monthly tuition fee. The full regular monthly tuition is due and payable the first of each month beginning September. Missing fee payments will cause your child to lose their seat in the Rolling Hills kindergarten enrichment program. Payments are accepted by exact cash or check payable to RHPCS at the school office, or by credit/debit card through our online payment portal.